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This stuff is pretty wild. I think some of the first papers showing such results came out around 2003 (or similar). I think the basic idea was that they first trained a monkey to use a normal joystick to move a cursor on a screen, during which time they recorded the brain activity patterns which...

It's certainly not a decision to be taken lightly, but I definitely feel that there are cases where this kind of decision is appropriate. I'm impressed that the judge had the courage to make such a ruling.

Mu.

I generally find it hard to tell; Iron makes for a very fleshed out straw man. Mind you, as Iron has pointed out, he contains multitudes, so there is space enough for a smattering of contradiction.

Love JP - I was such a dinosaur kid. On an unrelated note: I don't think I've mentioned it before, but moral relativism has made these debates a lot less stressful for me. No longer do I have to scramble around for objective justificatory reasons wondering why others cannot see 'The Truth'...

I was just thinking about that today in relation to Kwayera's post actually. Thanks for digging it up!

Somewhat misleading title. There is a significant difference between 31,000 scientists and 31,000 "Americans with university degrees in science ".

Haha, I'm not sure if that's the best screening process. I'm thinking that pensioners with internet access probably aren't amongst the most needy. Similarly, if the program relies on advertising for recruitment then, if population health is anything to go by, the least well off will probably be...

As above. Arts certainly won't stop you from having a successful/happy career but it doesn't feed as directly into well paid professions as (for example) commerce, law, engineering, medicine and dentistry. I'm sure you can work out why this generates higher demand.

My first response was an unfortunately jaded one - i.e. the feeling that the money could do a lot more in the developing world. Ideally there would be enough to support everyone, of course.

With regards to free will, certainly. He engages well with rational debate and doesn't simply shy away.

I think part of the difficulty is that some theists want to allow god to 'know the unknowable'. A will which is properly free (i.e. undetermined) is by nature unpredictable. I'm not sure sure how one can claim to know the unknowable without embracing contradiction head on. I applaud anyone who...

Touche.

Things fall apart. Eventually we die and relationships end whether we like it or not. It seems to be a very human tendency to try to maintain a sense of immortality, and 'everlasting love/relationships/families' seem to be another aspect of this. I don't see why it isn't possible to have a...

Aye, causation is still a strangely vexed issue in the philosophy of science (in particular Hume argued for a skeptical position with regards to causation). Though I should ask, what do you mean by 'validity'? I think you may potentially undermine your claims in (2) and (3) with your ensuing...

Aye, I'm still interested to know what the extreme economic right has to say on these issues. Admittedly I haven't been actively seaching, but I'm yet to see a particularly good argument for leaving health/food/etc to the market, and the market alone.

What does 'knowledge' amount to for you, and why do you feel that we lack it?

Technical issues regarding souls: - As Kwayera mentioned, identical twins start off as a single zygote. Do two seperate souls simply occupy the one zygote at once? Does a single soul split into two? Does a second soul simply appear at the time of spliting? - Split brain cases are...

One can only hope that we are able to make that choice once the critical time is upon us! All you need is love.

Ahh, I had thought previously that it was probably a Thatcher reference. Regretably, my historical knowledge is not very good. Nonetheless, the similarity between your rants and Rorty's Ironist is a brilliant quirk - and the puns multiply once you toss irony ito the mix. On foundational...